Costa Rican Coffee Bean Flavor Profile and Taste Characteristics | How to Brew Central American Coffee Beans for the Best Taste

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Introduction to Costa Rican Coffee

When it comes to Latin American coffee, FrontStreet Coffee believes that fellow coffee enthusiasts will sing praises of Costa Rican coffee, renowned for its high sweetness, bright acidity, and well-balanced flavor profile.

Costa Rican coffee is typically considered one of the finest flavored coffees in Central and South America. The Costa Rican coffee growing regions boast high altitudes, pleasant temperatures, and fertile soils, resulting in the production of high-quality Costa Rican coffee beans. Due to the reputation of Costa Rican coffee, Costa Rican coffee beans have been featured in Starbucks' Reserve coffee product line.

Ideal Growing Conditions

Arabica coffee plants are quite delicate, requiring specific climate conditions to thrive, including high altitudes and moderate temperatures. In the charming Latin American nation of Costa Rica, the mountainous terrain and warm temperatures in growing regions provide the perfect environment for cultivating the highest quality Arabica coffee beans.

Costa Rica experiences distinct dry and rainy seasons, with annual temperatures ranging between 17°C and 28°C, creating only about 10°C of temperature variation throughout the year. Over 80% of coffee growing areas are situated between 800 and 1,600 meters above sea level, with average annual rainfall between 2,000-3,000 millimeters.

Heavy rainfall and high altitudes create ideal growing conditions in Costa Rica and stunning mountain landscapes. Over 70% of coffee grows in these lush forests, where elevations vary significantly. All these factors influence the aroma, body, flavor, and acidity of Costa Rican coffee from different regions. Volcanic ash enriches the soil, providing oxygen to the beans and resulting in more complex flavors. The diversity and beautiful natural climate make Costa Rica a perfect place for living, tourism, and coffee cultivation.

Coffee Growing Regions

Costa Rica has eight distinct coffee growing regions, each producing coffee with its own unique flavor characteristics. Within Costa Rica, different regions feature diverse climates, various microclimates, and extremely high air humidity, bringing significant benefits to growing different coffee bean varieties.

Costa Rica's seven coffee regions include Brunca, Orosi, Tarrazú, Tres Ríos, Turrialba, Valle Occidental (Western Valley), and Valle Central (Central Valley).

Among these, Tarrazú is one of Costa Rica's most famous coffee growing regions, with coffee from this area known for its acidity and rich aroma. Brunca offers a moderate body, while Valle Occidental (Western Valley) is noted for subtle peach and apricot notes in its beans. The diversity of climate and humidity brings different flavors to each region, allowing you to enjoy distinctive Costa Rican coffee in eight different ways.

FrontStreet Coffee's Costa Rican Selection

Costa Rican coffee has gained fame for being "sweet as honey," and FrontStreet Coffee would like to recommend a Costa Rican Tarrazú coffee bean for everyone to experience this delightful sweetness. On FrontStreet Coffee's bean list, there is a coffee from Mirazu Estate.

About Tarrazú Region

[Tarrazú] The Tarrazú region is one of the highest altitude coffee growing regions in Costa Rica. The growing soil in Tarrazú is acidic, and most coffee plants in the region have different plants providing shade. Tarrazú coffee beans have a beautiful appearance with blue-green coloration. Due to the high growing altitude, coffee tree diseases are significantly inhibited, allowing coffee trees to devote more energy to fruit development. Nearly 95% of coffee beans produced here are classified as Strictly Hard Bean (SHB grade). Tarrazú coffee flavors tend toward citrus acidity, dried fruit sweetness, and dominant chocolate notes.

FrontStreet Coffee Costa Rican Strawberry Candy

Region: Costa Rica Tarrazú Region
Estate: Mirazu Estate
Altitude: 1,700 meters
Varieties: Geisha, ET47, SL28, Maico
Processing: Raisin Honey Process

Mirazu Estate owner Esteban Sanches was originally a staff member at La Candelilla Estate, gaining expertise in coffee machinery and post-harvest processing methods. Later, due to his unique insights into coffee, he left La Candelilla to establish his own coffee estate, naming it Mirazu. In the local language, Mirazu means "overlooking Tarrazú." Esteban Sanches believes that coffee quality begins with the coffee tree itself.

FrontStreet Coffee's Mirazu coffee beans use the raisin honey processing method, where ripe coffee cherries are dried to a shriveled state, then depulped while preserving all the mucilage layer before final drying. FrontStreet Coffee has found that raisin honey processed coffee has a richer, more viscous body than regular honey processed coffee, with more persistent aromatics and more intense sweetness.

When FrontStreet Coffee's roasters received these green coffee beans, considering the need to highlight the intense fruit aromas, floral notes, and strong sweetness of this raisin honey processed coffee, they opted for a medium roast level. When FrontStreet Coffee's baristas received the roasted beans, considering the relatively light roast, they decided to brew using higher water temperature (93°C) and finer grind size (80% pass-through rate on Chinese standard #20 sieve).

Regular readers of FrontStreet Coffee's articles know that FrontStreet Coffee has two signature drippers: Hario V60 and KONO. When brewing with higher water temperatures, to avoid over-extraction from prolonged contact between hot water and coffee grounds, the faster-flowing Hario V60 dripper is used. Additionally, to give the coffee more layered complexity, a three-pour water injection method is employed during brewing.

Dripper: Hario V60
Water Temperature: 93°C
Coffee Dose: 15 grams
Coffee-to-Water Ratio: 1:15
Grind Size: 80% pass-through rate on Chinese standard #20 sieve

First, pour 30g of water to bloom the coffee grounds for 30 seconds. Then, slowly pour in a small circular motion for the second pour until reaching 125g, creating segments. When the water level in the dripper drops to just above the coffee bed, gently continue the slow circular motion for the third pour until reaching 225g. Once all water has completely dripped into the server below, remove the dripper. The total extraction time should be approximately 2 minutes.

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